When I Was A Little Girl
Chapter 16
By: Chibi J
Rated: G
Edited by: Sailor Sista
It's 1:00 in the morning and I can't sleep. I have read a lot of other fics, but started to get bored, so I decided to write.
I don't own Sailor Moon, but I just bought a house! Maybe I'll get lucky and buy Sailor Moon next month.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
RECAP:
I held the crystal in my hand just as a door swung open. I looked up to see Zoisite and Kunzite enter. Their mouths were open in shock and amazement.
"Give us the crystal." Kunzite said, his voice only a whisper. He wasn't demanding it, but merely speaking the words that he had been ordered to.
"This ends now." My voice seemed to echo in the space around me, though I hadn't raised my voice.
I raised the crystal above my head and a silver glow began to pour out from the ginzuishou and my hands. It spread out in waves, encompassing everything around me.
~*~*~
"It's midnight." Grandfather absently spoke out. He, Luna, Artemis, Phobos, and Deimos had been sitting on a bench in the back of the shrine for hours. He had immediately sensed when his three grandchildren had been teleported from Earth. After running to the back, where the senshi had been practicing, he confirmed his feelings. Usagi, Shingo, and Rei were gone, so was everyone else.
"They'll be back, I know they will." Luna sighed. An immense amount of guilt was flooding her system. Finding the senshi gone had been upsetting, but more so was the fact that she wasn't with them.
Artemis was sharing in the pain, but could not bring his worries to words. He, instead, choose to nuzzle his head into Luna's neck, trying to comfort both her and him.
Five pairs of eyes were staring into the night sky when a flash of light filled the dark heavens. Although it lasted only a moment, the silver burst filled all of those who had seen it with a sense of wonder.
"They will be okay." Grandfather said with a small smile forming. "Everything will be okay."
~*~
"I spy something black."
"Haruka." Makoto groaned. After what seemed hours, the five girls had given up on searching and playing games to sit or lay on the ground. They decided to save their energy for whatever Fate had in store for them.
"Gomen." Haruka mumbled.
"Setsuna?" Minako asked as she turned to look at the eldest senshi.
"Hai Minako." She responded.
"Are we going to get out of here?" Minako asked, hoping for a positive answer.
Setsuna laughed internally. For the amount of time they had been locked in, this was the first time anyone had thought to ask her about the future.
"Minako, all I can say is that time is constantly changing."
"So you can only be vague." Hotaru corrected her.
"Correct." Setsuna replied with a sigh.
The room was quiet for some time as the five senshi contemplated the predicament they were in.
"I spy something silver." Haruka said as she suddenly stood up.
"What?" The other four occupants of the "cell" asked. They were immediately answered by the wave of silver light that washed into the room, momentarily blinding them.
~*~
"Mamoru?"
"Hai Shingo."
"Do you love my sister?"
"With all my heart."
"I'm glad." Shingo dropped his head back onto Mamoru's lap, where he had been resting. For all practical purposes, it was past Shingo's bedtime and his exhaustion was taking over.
Mamoru's eyes drifted shut as he listened to Shingo's even breathing. The young boy was in and out of sleep, occasionally waking to ask Mamoru random questions.
Although he never saw it, Mamoru felt a warm rush move through his system as the silver light made its way past him and Shingo.
~*~
"Are you okay Ami?" Rei asked, as she crawled over to where her half conscious friend lay.
"I will be." Ami moaned her reply.
"Michiru?" Rei asked out, unsure if the older senshi had come through yet.
"Hai." The whispered reply was enough of a reassurance for Rei.
"Just checking." Rei said as she reached out a hand to Michiru's shoulder.
The silver light was continuing on its outward path and covered over the three barely conscious girls.
~*~
"Damn it! What happened?!" Beryl screamed out as she threw a blast of energy at a nearby wall. "The crystal was supposed to be MINE!"
The few youma that stood in the throne room with their queen hovered in fear in the corners of the room. Beryl had been on a rampage since the generals had left to find the crystals. They hadn't yet returned and the youma were worried what would happen if they didn't return.
As if knowing that it was ending its journey, the silver light was slowing down as it entered the throne room. Several youma watched as the glowing light enveloped their comrades. Those that had been caught by it disintegrated immediately, sending the other youma running.
Yet, nothing could escape the light, including Beryl who watched in stunned silence as the wave encompassed her.
~*~*~
The room cleared of the light and I could once again see. The crystal had burned the darkness away and I found that the endless blackness that I had been trapped in was just a stone block cell.
I spun around, unsure if I was simply dreaming. There was an open door and in front of it were two crystals, the same as I had collected from the other two generals.
"Zoisite and Kunzite." I whispered as I bent down to pick up the crystals. I placed them in my pocket with the other two for save keeping.
I looked down at myself and found that I was no longer in my senshi uniform, but in a long flowing white dress. My mind flashed out and I realized that this was one of the dresses that I had worn as a princess.
A gasp caught in my throat. It was the dress I died in. I was killed, on the moon. I was, am, a princess.
A wave of nausea came over me and I dropped to me knees, begging my body not to pass out. Although I no longer faced the threat of the Dark Moon generals, I did not know what else might come for me.
So, with determination, I made myself stand up. I swayed a little, but forced myself to walk out of the door.
I entered a hallway covered in grime. (Why did evil villains have to be so dirty?) Three other wooden doors, that resembled the one I had just come through, lined the hallway. At the end of the hallway, an archway lead off to...somewhere.
I decided to press my luck and open the door to my immediate right. The door was heavy and it creaked open loudly, surprising both myself and the occupants on the other side.
"Hello?" I whispered, afraid that something evil may be there and I was disturbing its nap.
"Usagi?" A voice that I easily recognized as Minako's cried out.
"Mina!" I shouted and threw myself at my dear friend. Around me, I could hear similar sounds of happiness and suddenly felt enveloped in a large group hug.
Pulling back, I looked at the girls who surrounded me. "Haruka, Makoto, Hotaru, Setsuna! You're all okay!" My voice was laced with joy that was echoed in every voice that responded.
"We're fine! What happened? Where have you been? What's with the dress?" Minako fired the questions at me without a breath in between or a chance for me to answer.
"I'm fine. I'll explain everything later. We need to find the others." I said, though I felt more like I was ordering. The girls didn't even try to question me again as we ran back into the hall to the next door.
I reached for the handle on the door when Haruka stepped in front of me.
"Please, allow me." Haruka said with a devilish voice and charming smile. I suddenly realized that I had almost lost her and a tear rolled down my cheek.
"We are okay neko. So is everyone else. So no more tears." She said encouragingly as she pushed open the door.
The sight that awaited us was frightening. Rei, Ami, and Michiru were lying on the ground and not moving. I quickly ran to Rei, Haruka ran to Michiru, and the others spread out amongst the three fallen senshi.
"Rei?! REI?!" I called out to her as I shook her still body. Panic was overtaking my system.
Slowly, her eyes opened, causing me to take the first breath since we entered the room.
"Geez Usa, don't you know that you are suppose to be quiet around sick people?" Rei said in a quiet, yet sarcastic voice. I couldn't help but cry as I grabbed my cousin and best friend into my arms.
Rei, Ami, and Michiru told us how the generals came and stolen the crystals.
"We failed." Rei said in a defeated tone, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"No Rei, you didn't." I reached out my hand to wipe the tears off of her face. "Everything is okay, you didn't fail."
"But Usa, they have all the crystals." Ami spoke this time, voicing a fear that all of the senshi, except myself, were thinking.
"No, they don't." I said and will the crystal to come forth. It wasn't like it sprang forth from my chest like some disgustingly cheesy horror movie. It was more like it just formed in the air directly in front of my chest.
"What?" A unified question came from all the senshi. Those who couldn't bring themselves to voice the question were asking it with their eyes.
"This is the ginzuishou." I said with a smile. I knew that I would be in for a lot of questions, but knew that they had to find Mamoru. "I promise, I will explain everything, but we have to find Mamoru first."
A series of nods responded from the girls, although some looked disappointed that they would have to postpone the interrogation.
"Third times the charm, right?" I asked as I approached the last unopened door in the hall.
"Gomen Usa, but I believe that only applies if the first two attempts fail." Michiru informed me from her position leaning against Haruka. I looked to Ami where she stood with assistance from Minako, as if to get her opinion, and she nodded her head in agreement.
Makoto, who had been holding up Rei, gave a slight laugh. "Don't worry Usagi, I think that it's an appropriate saying for this situation."
"Arigato Makoto." I smiled and turned back to face the door. I pushed on the door and it opened surprisingly easy. My nerves felt on fire as I began to enter through the door. It could be a trap.
But my nervousness died and my heart turned to mush as I looked at the scene before me. Shingo lay curled up in the fetal position with his head lying on Mamoru's lap, while Mamoru had apparently fallen asleep sitting up, leaning against a wall.
"How did Shingo get here?" Rei asked as she came up to stand next to me.
"I don't know." I replied as tears escaped my eyes. Seeing my younger brother and my beloved save and unharmed was having a definite affect on my senses.
"He was running for you when the generals attacked. He must have gotten caught up in the transportation beam." Hotaru supplied. I nodded my head in understanding. After all, Shingo may be a pain, but he has never been one to take things lying down.
I walked over to where the two lay and squatted down next to Mamoru. "Mamoru, wake up." I reached out a hand and shook him gently. It was then that I noticed that he was dressed in some kind of armor and a long cape. "Mamoru."
"Hai." He said as he slowly opened his eyes. "Are you an angel?" He asked as he looked at me.
"Mamoru...it's me...Usagi." My voice shook. He couldn't remember me?
"Usa?"
"Hai."
"I love you." He said as he slipped back into sleep.
~*~
After our attempts to wake both Mamoru and Shingo had failed, we all decided that it would be best if we all took a rest. Rei, Ami, and Michiru held absolutely no objection, while the rest of the senshi agreed only if they took shifts watching the door.
Haruka had been watching the door for some time when I decided to relieve her of her duty.
"Hey odango." She quietly acknowledged me as I approached her. Everyone else was sleeping throughout the cell.
"Why don't you take a break?"
"No. Everyone else is sleeping and I can't leave you to guard the door alone." Haruka replied.
"Why not?" I asked, planting my hands on my hips in outrage. I felt the lace on the dress I wore beneath my fingers and absently looked down at the dress.
"You are the princess of the moon." Haruka answered, as if it were an everyday occurrence.
"Guess it was a little easy to tell by the dress, huh?" I asked with a laugh. Haruka laughed and it felt good to hear the sound.
"Well, I always had a funny feeling about you. Guess I was right." She said with a mocking bow, to which I smacked her in the head.
"Knock it off. This doesn't change anything." I insisted.
"Koneko, it changes everything." Haruka sighed.
"No it won't." I raised my voice slightly in an attempt to sound mad. In a whisper, it came off more as annoyance. "I'm me, Usagi, and nothing will change that. Besides, who would want to worship a princess of the Moon?"
"I would." I turned around to see Mamoru approaching behind me.
"You-you're a-awake." I stammered out. I hadn't expected him to sneak up on me and Haruka gave no acknowledgement of him coming up behind me.
"Well, now that there is a prince here to guard you, I think I'll go rest." Haruka said as she began to walk away. "I'll be right over here if you need me."
"Hi." I smiled at Mamoru. The armor he wore made him look even more handsome than I had remembered.
"Hi." He answered back as he stepped forward to me. Without another word, he enveloped me into a hug. "I was so worried I lost you." He whispered into my ear.
"I was so scared that we would never be together again." I whispered back. He pulled away slightly and brought his head down towards mine and took my lips into his own.
His kiss seemed never ending, as if we both needed each other to survive. I felt my heart swell and knew, in that moment, that I would never be able to live without him.
So it was reluctance that our lips parted from one another. When he looked down into my eyes I could see his love for me shining in his blue eyes.
"So, my princess, how are you feeling?" He asked with a twinkle in his eye. I had a feeling that my "title" just turned into a new nickname.
"Anxious." I replied. "Very, very anxious."
"Why?" He asked quietly, obviously expecting a different answer.
"Because we have been here to long for nothing to have happened." My words had an apparent affect on him as I felt his muscles stiffen beneath my hands.
"You're right." He said as he pulled me back from the door and turned us around so that he was the one by the entrance.
"Mamoru..." I wanted to ensure him that I would be okay, but knew that any pleading would fall on deaf ears.
"A princess makes an excellent target and they would be more than glad to try to hurt you." Mamoru replied. It was then that I realized that he didn't know who he was. When I transformed into the princess, the memory that stuck out the most was that of Prince Endymion. Without a doubt in my mind, I knew that Mamoru was Endymion.
"Well," I began, crossing my arms in front of my chest, "A prince makes just as good of a target."
"Nani?" He looked at me as if I had grown two more heads.
"Have you noticed what you're wearing?" I questioned him. Obviously he hadn't, since he took a good look at the armor adorning his arms, the cape that hung from his neck, and the sword at his hip.
"I'm the prince?" He whispered, not believing the possibility.
"Hai." I responded cheerfully. Without a second though, I urged the crystal to my hands and held it out in front of him. With a tentative hand, he reached out to touch it. The ginzuishou flared for a moment and Mamoru's eyes went wide with shock.
He turned to look at me as if I was the ghost of some long lost love. "Serenity?" Of course, I was the ghost of some long lost love, in a matter of speaking.
"Hai." I replied as the crystal once again disappeared. I had barely a moment to breath before he once again grabbed me into a bone-crushing hug.
"Awwww." (AN: come on here people, you didn't expect for them to sleep through it all, did you?)
My head dropped onto his shoulder as I heard the collective sound of girls gushing over another's love. I pulled back from Mamoru slightly and noticed that Shingo was waking up. I laughed to myself as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and began to look around with a very lost look.
"Shingo?" I questioned him. His eyes suddenly lit up with understanding.
"Usagi!" He shouted as he ran towards me. I dropped down to my knees and enveloped my brother as he ran towards me. Tears once again slipped from my eyes and I could feel his matching tears falling onto my shoulder.
"It's okay Shingo, everything is okay." I reassured him as I gently rubbed his back.
"I was afraid Usa, afraid that I would lose you too." He stuttered out between sobs.
"I'm here Shingo, I'm here." I whispered to him.
~*~
After spending some time reassuring my younger brother that I was truly alive and well, I decided to fill everyone in on everything. Makoto stood watch at the door while the tale progressed and only looked away from the empty hall to occasionally ask a question.
Although I had given Mamoru back his memories of our previous life, I had decided to not do the same for the other senshi. The pain of their deaths and the deaths of their loved ones was not something that anyone should be burdened with.
Instead, I told everyone of their positions and titles on the moon. The fact that they were all princess's seemed to please them all. Well, perhaps not Haruka, who found out that she was forced to wear dresses everyday. The most enthusiastic was Shingo.
"I told you that I could be the prince." He said with a haughty voice. "Maybe not the one you wanted at the time, but I'm still a prince." I think he was most grateful to learn that he had indeed been my brother during the Silver Millennium.
I told them how the Silver Millennium was known as a time of peace, but was shattered by an ultimate evil, Metallia. The fact that she was the foe that they now faced didn't please them. Nor did the fact that the generals had originally guarded Prince Endymion before they were coerced to the side of evil.
The most startling fact seemed to be that Beryl was once a lady of the court on Earth. I told them that I didn't know why she turned to evil and Mamoru didn't know why either. What it meant to me though, was that she could be healed, much like the generals had.
~*~*~
"What happened?" A girl, about sixteen years old with long auburn hair, lay on her stomach on the hard stone ground. She looked around herself and decided that she must have been in some kind of cave.
"How did I get here?" She again questioned out loud, still receiving no answer. She stood and brushed the dirt off of her long purple gown, which was now tattered and torn.
With slow, unsteady steps, she began to walk around the large cavern she found herself. Her mind was blank and she found that she could remember nothing. Not how she had gotten there, what had happened, or even where she was from.
Trying to remember her name, to know avail, she lifted a hand to her head as a headache began to form. Yet the girl refused to sit down and rest. She was in search of answers and needed to find them.
With determination, the girl walked through the cave, with one hand supporting her on the wall. She paid no attention to the small piles of dust that littered the ground around her.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood. A beautiful day in the neighborhood. Would you be mine, could you be mine, won't you be my neighbor.
ChibiJ77@yahoo.com
Chapter 16
By: Chibi J
Rated: G
Edited by: Sailor Sista
It's 1:00 in the morning and I can't sleep. I have read a lot of other fics, but started to get bored, so I decided to write.
I don't own Sailor Moon, but I just bought a house! Maybe I'll get lucky and buy Sailor Moon next month.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
RECAP:
I held the crystal in my hand just as a door swung open. I looked up to see Zoisite and Kunzite enter. Their mouths were open in shock and amazement.
"Give us the crystal." Kunzite said, his voice only a whisper. He wasn't demanding it, but merely speaking the words that he had been ordered to.
"This ends now." My voice seemed to echo in the space around me, though I hadn't raised my voice.
I raised the crystal above my head and a silver glow began to pour out from the ginzuishou and my hands. It spread out in waves, encompassing everything around me.
~*~*~
"It's midnight." Grandfather absently spoke out. He, Luna, Artemis, Phobos, and Deimos had been sitting on a bench in the back of the shrine for hours. He had immediately sensed when his three grandchildren had been teleported from Earth. After running to the back, where the senshi had been practicing, he confirmed his feelings. Usagi, Shingo, and Rei were gone, so was everyone else.
"They'll be back, I know they will." Luna sighed. An immense amount of guilt was flooding her system. Finding the senshi gone had been upsetting, but more so was the fact that she wasn't with them.
Artemis was sharing in the pain, but could not bring his worries to words. He, instead, choose to nuzzle his head into Luna's neck, trying to comfort both her and him.
Five pairs of eyes were staring into the night sky when a flash of light filled the dark heavens. Although it lasted only a moment, the silver burst filled all of those who had seen it with a sense of wonder.
"They will be okay." Grandfather said with a small smile forming. "Everything will be okay."
~*~
"I spy something black."
"Haruka." Makoto groaned. After what seemed hours, the five girls had given up on searching and playing games to sit or lay on the ground. They decided to save their energy for whatever Fate had in store for them.
"Gomen." Haruka mumbled.
"Setsuna?" Minako asked as she turned to look at the eldest senshi.
"Hai Minako." She responded.
"Are we going to get out of here?" Minako asked, hoping for a positive answer.
Setsuna laughed internally. For the amount of time they had been locked in, this was the first time anyone had thought to ask her about the future.
"Minako, all I can say is that time is constantly changing."
"So you can only be vague." Hotaru corrected her.
"Correct." Setsuna replied with a sigh.
The room was quiet for some time as the five senshi contemplated the predicament they were in.
"I spy something silver." Haruka said as she suddenly stood up.
"What?" The other four occupants of the "cell" asked. They were immediately answered by the wave of silver light that washed into the room, momentarily blinding them.
~*~
"Mamoru?"
"Hai Shingo."
"Do you love my sister?"
"With all my heart."
"I'm glad." Shingo dropped his head back onto Mamoru's lap, where he had been resting. For all practical purposes, it was past Shingo's bedtime and his exhaustion was taking over.
Mamoru's eyes drifted shut as he listened to Shingo's even breathing. The young boy was in and out of sleep, occasionally waking to ask Mamoru random questions.
Although he never saw it, Mamoru felt a warm rush move through his system as the silver light made its way past him and Shingo.
~*~
"Are you okay Ami?" Rei asked, as she crawled over to where her half conscious friend lay.
"I will be." Ami moaned her reply.
"Michiru?" Rei asked out, unsure if the older senshi had come through yet.
"Hai." The whispered reply was enough of a reassurance for Rei.
"Just checking." Rei said as she reached out a hand to Michiru's shoulder.
The silver light was continuing on its outward path and covered over the three barely conscious girls.
~*~
"Damn it! What happened?!" Beryl screamed out as she threw a blast of energy at a nearby wall. "The crystal was supposed to be MINE!"
The few youma that stood in the throne room with their queen hovered in fear in the corners of the room. Beryl had been on a rampage since the generals had left to find the crystals. They hadn't yet returned and the youma were worried what would happen if they didn't return.
As if knowing that it was ending its journey, the silver light was slowing down as it entered the throne room. Several youma watched as the glowing light enveloped their comrades. Those that had been caught by it disintegrated immediately, sending the other youma running.
Yet, nothing could escape the light, including Beryl who watched in stunned silence as the wave encompassed her.
~*~*~
The room cleared of the light and I could once again see. The crystal had burned the darkness away and I found that the endless blackness that I had been trapped in was just a stone block cell.
I spun around, unsure if I was simply dreaming. There was an open door and in front of it were two crystals, the same as I had collected from the other two generals.
"Zoisite and Kunzite." I whispered as I bent down to pick up the crystals. I placed them in my pocket with the other two for save keeping.
I looked down at myself and found that I was no longer in my senshi uniform, but in a long flowing white dress. My mind flashed out and I realized that this was one of the dresses that I had worn as a princess.
A gasp caught in my throat. It was the dress I died in. I was killed, on the moon. I was, am, a princess.
A wave of nausea came over me and I dropped to me knees, begging my body not to pass out. Although I no longer faced the threat of the Dark Moon generals, I did not know what else might come for me.
So, with determination, I made myself stand up. I swayed a little, but forced myself to walk out of the door.
I entered a hallway covered in grime. (Why did evil villains have to be so dirty?) Three other wooden doors, that resembled the one I had just come through, lined the hallway. At the end of the hallway, an archway lead off to...somewhere.
I decided to press my luck and open the door to my immediate right. The door was heavy and it creaked open loudly, surprising both myself and the occupants on the other side.
"Hello?" I whispered, afraid that something evil may be there and I was disturbing its nap.
"Usagi?" A voice that I easily recognized as Minako's cried out.
"Mina!" I shouted and threw myself at my dear friend. Around me, I could hear similar sounds of happiness and suddenly felt enveloped in a large group hug.
Pulling back, I looked at the girls who surrounded me. "Haruka, Makoto, Hotaru, Setsuna! You're all okay!" My voice was laced with joy that was echoed in every voice that responded.
"We're fine! What happened? Where have you been? What's with the dress?" Minako fired the questions at me without a breath in between or a chance for me to answer.
"I'm fine. I'll explain everything later. We need to find the others." I said, though I felt more like I was ordering. The girls didn't even try to question me again as we ran back into the hall to the next door.
I reached for the handle on the door when Haruka stepped in front of me.
"Please, allow me." Haruka said with a devilish voice and charming smile. I suddenly realized that I had almost lost her and a tear rolled down my cheek.
"We are okay neko. So is everyone else. So no more tears." She said encouragingly as she pushed open the door.
The sight that awaited us was frightening. Rei, Ami, and Michiru were lying on the ground and not moving. I quickly ran to Rei, Haruka ran to Michiru, and the others spread out amongst the three fallen senshi.
"Rei?! REI?!" I called out to her as I shook her still body. Panic was overtaking my system.
Slowly, her eyes opened, causing me to take the first breath since we entered the room.
"Geez Usa, don't you know that you are suppose to be quiet around sick people?" Rei said in a quiet, yet sarcastic voice. I couldn't help but cry as I grabbed my cousin and best friend into my arms.
Rei, Ami, and Michiru told us how the generals came and stolen the crystals.
"We failed." Rei said in a defeated tone, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"No Rei, you didn't." I reached out my hand to wipe the tears off of her face. "Everything is okay, you didn't fail."
"But Usa, they have all the crystals." Ami spoke this time, voicing a fear that all of the senshi, except myself, were thinking.
"No, they don't." I said and will the crystal to come forth. It wasn't like it sprang forth from my chest like some disgustingly cheesy horror movie. It was more like it just formed in the air directly in front of my chest.
"What?" A unified question came from all the senshi. Those who couldn't bring themselves to voice the question were asking it with their eyes.
"This is the ginzuishou." I said with a smile. I knew that I would be in for a lot of questions, but knew that they had to find Mamoru. "I promise, I will explain everything, but we have to find Mamoru first."
A series of nods responded from the girls, although some looked disappointed that they would have to postpone the interrogation.
"Third times the charm, right?" I asked as I approached the last unopened door in the hall.
"Gomen Usa, but I believe that only applies if the first two attempts fail." Michiru informed me from her position leaning against Haruka. I looked to Ami where she stood with assistance from Minako, as if to get her opinion, and she nodded her head in agreement.
Makoto, who had been holding up Rei, gave a slight laugh. "Don't worry Usagi, I think that it's an appropriate saying for this situation."
"Arigato Makoto." I smiled and turned back to face the door. I pushed on the door and it opened surprisingly easy. My nerves felt on fire as I began to enter through the door. It could be a trap.
But my nervousness died and my heart turned to mush as I looked at the scene before me. Shingo lay curled up in the fetal position with his head lying on Mamoru's lap, while Mamoru had apparently fallen asleep sitting up, leaning against a wall.
"How did Shingo get here?" Rei asked as she came up to stand next to me.
"I don't know." I replied as tears escaped my eyes. Seeing my younger brother and my beloved save and unharmed was having a definite affect on my senses.
"He was running for you when the generals attacked. He must have gotten caught up in the transportation beam." Hotaru supplied. I nodded my head in understanding. After all, Shingo may be a pain, but he has never been one to take things lying down.
I walked over to where the two lay and squatted down next to Mamoru. "Mamoru, wake up." I reached out a hand and shook him gently. It was then that I noticed that he was dressed in some kind of armor and a long cape. "Mamoru."
"Hai." He said as he slowly opened his eyes. "Are you an angel?" He asked as he looked at me.
"Mamoru...it's me...Usagi." My voice shook. He couldn't remember me?
"Usa?"
"Hai."
"I love you." He said as he slipped back into sleep.
~*~
After our attempts to wake both Mamoru and Shingo had failed, we all decided that it would be best if we all took a rest. Rei, Ami, and Michiru held absolutely no objection, while the rest of the senshi agreed only if they took shifts watching the door.
Haruka had been watching the door for some time when I decided to relieve her of her duty.
"Hey odango." She quietly acknowledged me as I approached her. Everyone else was sleeping throughout the cell.
"Why don't you take a break?"
"No. Everyone else is sleeping and I can't leave you to guard the door alone." Haruka replied.
"Why not?" I asked, planting my hands on my hips in outrage. I felt the lace on the dress I wore beneath my fingers and absently looked down at the dress.
"You are the princess of the moon." Haruka answered, as if it were an everyday occurrence.
"Guess it was a little easy to tell by the dress, huh?" I asked with a laugh. Haruka laughed and it felt good to hear the sound.
"Well, I always had a funny feeling about you. Guess I was right." She said with a mocking bow, to which I smacked her in the head.
"Knock it off. This doesn't change anything." I insisted.
"Koneko, it changes everything." Haruka sighed.
"No it won't." I raised my voice slightly in an attempt to sound mad. In a whisper, it came off more as annoyance. "I'm me, Usagi, and nothing will change that. Besides, who would want to worship a princess of the Moon?"
"I would." I turned around to see Mamoru approaching behind me.
"You-you're a-awake." I stammered out. I hadn't expected him to sneak up on me and Haruka gave no acknowledgement of him coming up behind me.
"Well, now that there is a prince here to guard you, I think I'll go rest." Haruka said as she began to walk away. "I'll be right over here if you need me."
"Hi." I smiled at Mamoru. The armor he wore made him look even more handsome than I had remembered.
"Hi." He answered back as he stepped forward to me. Without another word, he enveloped me into a hug. "I was so worried I lost you." He whispered into my ear.
"I was so scared that we would never be together again." I whispered back. He pulled away slightly and brought his head down towards mine and took my lips into his own.
His kiss seemed never ending, as if we both needed each other to survive. I felt my heart swell and knew, in that moment, that I would never be able to live without him.
So it was reluctance that our lips parted from one another. When he looked down into my eyes I could see his love for me shining in his blue eyes.
"So, my princess, how are you feeling?" He asked with a twinkle in his eye. I had a feeling that my "title" just turned into a new nickname.
"Anxious." I replied. "Very, very anxious."
"Why?" He asked quietly, obviously expecting a different answer.
"Because we have been here to long for nothing to have happened." My words had an apparent affect on him as I felt his muscles stiffen beneath my hands.
"You're right." He said as he pulled me back from the door and turned us around so that he was the one by the entrance.
"Mamoru..." I wanted to ensure him that I would be okay, but knew that any pleading would fall on deaf ears.
"A princess makes an excellent target and they would be more than glad to try to hurt you." Mamoru replied. It was then that I realized that he didn't know who he was. When I transformed into the princess, the memory that stuck out the most was that of Prince Endymion. Without a doubt in my mind, I knew that Mamoru was Endymion.
"Well," I began, crossing my arms in front of my chest, "A prince makes just as good of a target."
"Nani?" He looked at me as if I had grown two more heads.
"Have you noticed what you're wearing?" I questioned him. Obviously he hadn't, since he took a good look at the armor adorning his arms, the cape that hung from his neck, and the sword at his hip.
"I'm the prince?" He whispered, not believing the possibility.
"Hai." I responded cheerfully. Without a second though, I urged the crystal to my hands and held it out in front of him. With a tentative hand, he reached out to touch it. The ginzuishou flared for a moment and Mamoru's eyes went wide with shock.
He turned to look at me as if I was the ghost of some long lost love. "Serenity?" Of course, I was the ghost of some long lost love, in a matter of speaking.
"Hai." I replied as the crystal once again disappeared. I had barely a moment to breath before he once again grabbed me into a bone-crushing hug.
"Awwww." (AN: come on here people, you didn't expect for them to sleep through it all, did you?)
My head dropped onto his shoulder as I heard the collective sound of girls gushing over another's love. I pulled back from Mamoru slightly and noticed that Shingo was waking up. I laughed to myself as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and began to look around with a very lost look.
"Shingo?" I questioned him. His eyes suddenly lit up with understanding.
"Usagi!" He shouted as he ran towards me. I dropped down to my knees and enveloped my brother as he ran towards me. Tears once again slipped from my eyes and I could feel his matching tears falling onto my shoulder.
"It's okay Shingo, everything is okay." I reassured him as I gently rubbed his back.
"I was afraid Usa, afraid that I would lose you too." He stuttered out between sobs.
"I'm here Shingo, I'm here." I whispered to him.
~*~
After spending some time reassuring my younger brother that I was truly alive and well, I decided to fill everyone in on everything. Makoto stood watch at the door while the tale progressed and only looked away from the empty hall to occasionally ask a question.
Although I had given Mamoru back his memories of our previous life, I had decided to not do the same for the other senshi. The pain of their deaths and the deaths of their loved ones was not something that anyone should be burdened with.
Instead, I told everyone of their positions and titles on the moon. The fact that they were all princess's seemed to please them all. Well, perhaps not Haruka, who found out that she was forced to wear dresses everyday. The most enthusiastic was Shingo.
"I told you that I could be the prince." He said with a haughty voice. "Maybe not the one you wanted at the time, but I'm still a prince." I think he was most grateful to learn that he had indeed been my brother during the Silver Millennium.
I told them how the Silver Millennium was known as a time of peace, but was shattered by an ultimate evil, Metallia. The fact that she was the foe that they now faced didn't please them. Nor did the fact that the generals had originally guarded Prince Endymion before they were coerced to the side of evil.
The most startling fact seemed to be that Beryl was once a lady of the court on Earth. I told them that I didn't know why she turned to evil and Mamoru didn't know why either. What it meant to me though, was that she could be healed, much like the generals had.
~*~*~
"What happened?" A girl, about sixteen years old with long auburn hair, lay on her stomach on the hard stone ground. She looked around herself and decided that she must have been in some kind of cave.
"How did I get here?" She again questioned out loud, still receiving no answer. She stood and brushed the dirt off of her long purple gown, which was now tattered and torn.
With slow, unsteady steps, she began to walk around the large cavern she found herself. Her mind was blank and she found that she could remember nothing. Not how she had gotten there, what had happened, or even where she was from.
Trying to remember her name, to know avail, she lifted a hand to her head as a headache began to form. Yet the girl refused to sit down and rest. She was in search of answers and needed to find them.
With determination, the girl walked through the cave, with one hand supporting her on the wall. She paid no attention to the small piles of dust that littered the ground around her.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood. A beautiful day in the neighborhood. Would you be mine, could you be mine, won't you be my neighbor.
ChibiJ77@yahoo.com
